What and who truly defines morality?
Israel has been bombarded alternately with thousands of rockets and with hundreds of articles decrying its "disproportionate" and "immoral" response. Israel's sovereignty is abused and its citizens are attacked, kidnapped and terrorized, and the world clamors to condemn Israel's response.
On the one hand, you have a soldier pushing a child behind him so that he can protect the child. On the other, you have a Hizbullah fighter pushing a child in front of him so that he can be protected by the child. In the ensuing gun battle, the latter child gets hurt and the Hizbullah terrorist is seen as the victim. Which of these actions should be viewed as being disproportionate and immoral? Would it be that of the soldier, or that of the Hizbullah terrorist? Or perhaps that of the world media?
In the recent past, Hizbullah leaders have boasted of their ability to destroy Israel because the Jews revere life while the Muslims glorify death. When a Hizbullah rocket killed two Israeli Arab children in Nazareth, the world viewed the tragedy as a sad accident of war. The terrorists weren't trying to kill Arab children, they were just trying to kill Jewish ones. Yet, when Israel attacks a Hizbullah stronghold and one of its missiles cause a house to collapse on civilians living in the basement, the world expresses outrage, not sadness.
In the words of Sky News reporter David Bowden, "As a correspondent it is my job to tell you the facts as I see them... and here are the facts of what happened at Qana.... a superior military power launched a devastating and deadly attack on scores of women and their children, most of whom are now dead. "
The fact is that the accidental death of innocent men, women and children is simply a very sad tragedy. Yet, in the preconceived and predetermined world-view of the media, this tragedy has become a purposeful "deadly attack on scores of women and their children." The suffering of innocents never ceases to sadden, frustrate and shake any caring human being, including the caring human beings of this people. Nevertheless, immoral declarations of what defines morality enrage a people who have been victimized and then vilified for hitting back forcefully and resolutely against the sovereign nation that has harbored and nurtured terrorism and hatred.
The morality of this people is defined not by the meda, nor by world opinion, but rather by the individuals who make up this people. They are individuals who sense a deep commitment to their community, their land and their faith. They are soldiers who put themselves at greater risk in order to avoid innocent causalities. They are young men who put their commitment to their people above all other considerations.
They include young men like Amichai Merchavia (H.y.d.), who was dismissed from the army because he dared to write a letter to the Chief of Staff to express his concerns and disapproval of the expulsion of Jews from Gush Katif and the Shomron. Yet, when the army called him back, he returned to serve his people without hesitation. Prior to this, when the Israeli government decide to uproot one of the outposts in dispute, Amichai was there. It was at that demonstration that he was brutally attacked by the police riot squad and lost consciousness. That, too, did not stop him from agreeing to serve his people. It was that idealism that gave him the strength to lead his men into battle and, regrettably, led to his death. It is a different sort of morality.
It was that same high moral sense that led Major Roi Klein (H.y.d.) to volunteer to lead his unit in Lebanon. Roi, 31 years old and the father of two boys, was an accomplished musician, a superb commander and a Torah scholar. When his unit was attacked in Bint J'beil, he and his men were surrounded in an ambush. One of the terrorists lobbed a grenade towards the group. Roi yelled out "Sh'ma Yisrael" and jumped on the grenade. He took the brunt of the explosion and saved many of his men. This, too, was a different sort of morality.
There are hardly any neighborhoods in this country that do not have new, temporary residents. Many families from the north have found refuge in homes of people they never met before, and have spent a couple of nights to a couple of weeks in the homes of loving strangers. This is the morality of a nation that sees itself as a people.
This war is being fought in a period called Bein HaMeitsarim, the three weeks of mourning for the destruction of both Jerusalem Temples. Unnecessary hatred brought about the destruction of the Temple and the same unnecessary hatred brought about the destruction of the Gush Katif settlements. It is only the unconditional love between the fractured pieces of this nation that will bring about the fixing and the healing that this nation truly needs.
The unrelenting hatred and double standards that seems to spew forth from different segments of the world will serve as the fire that will fuse those pieces together externally. It is that special type of morality that resides in the heart of this people that will heal this nation from the inside.
Israel has been bombarded alternately with thousands of rockets and with hundreds of articles decrying its "disproportionate" and "immoral" response. Israel's sovereignty is abused and its citizens are attacked, kidnapped and terrorized, and the world clamors to condemn Israel's response.
On the one hand, you have a soldier pushing a child behind him so that he can protect the child. On the other, you have a Hizbullah fighter pushing a child in front of him so that he can be protected by the child. In the ensuing gun battle, the latter child gets hurt and the Hizbullah terrorist is seen as the victim. Which of these actions should be viewed as being disproportionate and immoral? Would it be that of the soldier, or that of the Hizbullah terrorist? Or perhaps that of the world media?
In the recent past, Hizbullah leaders have boasted of their ability to destroy Israel because the Jews revere life while the Muslims glorify death. When a Hizbullah rocket killed two Israeli Arab children in Nazareth, the world viewed the tragedy as a sad accident of war. The terrorists weren't trying to kill Arab children, they were just trying to kill Jewish ones. Yet, when Israel attacks a Hizbullah stronghold and one of its missiles cause a house to collapse on civilians living in the basement, the world expresses outrage, not sadness.
In the words of Sky News reporter David Bowden, "As a correspondent it is my job to tell you the facts as I see them... and here are the facts of what happened at Qana.... a superior military power launched a devastating and deadly attack on scores of women and their children, most of whom are now dead. "
The fact is that the accidental death of innocent men, women and children is simply a very sad tragedy. Yet, in the preconceived and predetermined world-view of the media, this tragedy has become a purposeful "deadly attack on scores of women and their children." The suffering of innocents never ceases to sadden, frustrate and shake any caring human being, including the caring human beings of this people. Nevertheless, immoral declarations of what defines morality enrage a people who have been victimized and then vilified for hitting back forcefully and resolutely against the sovereign nation that has harbored and nurtured terrorism and hatred.
The morality of this people is defined not by the meda, nor by world opinion, but rather by the individuals who make up this people. They are individuals who sense a deep commitment to their community, their land and their faith. They are soldiers who put themselves at greater risk in order to avoid innocent causalities. They are young men who put their commitment to their people above all other considerations.
They include young men like Amichai Merchavia (H.y.d.), who was dismissed from the army because he dared to write a letter to the Chief of Staff to express his concerns and disapproval of the expulsion of Jews from Gush Katif and the Shomron. Yet, when the army called him back, he returned to serve his people without hesitation. Prior to this, when the Israeli government decide to uproot one of the outposts in dispute, Amichai was there. It was at that demonstration that he was brutally attacked by the police riot squad and lost consciousness. That, too, did not stop him from agreeing to serve his people. It was that idealism that gave him the strength to lead his men into battle and, regrettably, led to his death. It is a different sort of morality.
It was that same high moral sense that led Major Roi Klein (H.y.d.) to volunteer to lead his unit in Lebanon. Roi, 31 years old and the father of two boys, was an accomplished musician, a superb commander and a Torah scholar. When his unit was attacked in Bint J'beil, he and his men were surrounded in an ambush. One of the terrorists lobbed a grenade towards the group. Roi yelled out "Sh'ma Yisrael" and jumped on the grenade. He took the brunt of the explosion and saved many of his men. This, too, was a different sort of morality.
There are hardly any neighborhoods in this country that do not have new, temporary residents. Many families from the north have found refuge in homes of people they never met before, and have spent a couple of nights to a couple of weeks in the homes of loving strangers. This is the morality of a nation that sees itself as a people.
This war is being fought in a period called Bein HaMeitsarim, the three weeks of mourning for the destruction of both Jerusalem Temples. Unnecessary hatred brought about the destruction of the Temple and the same unnecessary hatred brought about the destruction of the Gush Katif settlements. It is only the unconditional love between the fractured pieces of this nation that will bring about the fixing and the healing that this nation truly needs.
The unrelenting hatred and double standards that seems to spew forth from different segments of the world will serve as the fire that will fuse those pieces together externally. It is that special type of morality that resides in the heart of this people that will heal this nation from the inside.